Quick release support for rescue breathing apparatus



United States Patent Inventor Donald E. Johnson Rte. 10, Box 454-A, Lexington, N.C. 27292 Appl. No. 814,479

Filed Jan. 14, 1969 Continuationin-part of Ser. No. 732,133, May 27, 1968, abandoned.

Patented Dec. 15, 1970 QUICK RELEASE SUPPORT FOR RESCUE BREATHING APPARATUS 23 Claims, 9 Drawing Figs.

U.S. Cl. 248/311; 21 1/71; 248/316 Int. Cl A62c 39/00 Field of Search 248/31 1,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 286,113 10/1883 Burk 248/316 1,000,868 8/191 1 Williams. 248/316 2,316,995 4/1943 Smith 248/316 Primary Examiner-Roy D. Frazier Assistant Examiner-J. Franklin Foss Attorney-David Rabin ABSTRACT: This invention is directed to a rescue apparatus and more particularly to a quick-release support for the oxygen tank of a breathing apparatus suitable for attachment to the seat of afire engine or other rescue vehicle, wherein the occupant may strap the breathing apparatus onto his back en route to the scene of the accident. Upon arrival at the scene, the occupant presses a lever which permits the tank and its associated breathing apparatus to be withdrawn frpm the supporting arms as the occupant dismounts from the seats PATENTEDBEEISIQYB 7 $547,391

SHEET 1 BF 4 INVENTOR. DONALD E. JOHNSON BY C ATTORNEY PATENTEUBEEISIQYB 3547391 SHEET 2 UF 4 I INVENTOR. DONALD E. JOHNSON ATTORNEY PATENTEU DEC! 5 I970 SHEET 3 [IF 4 4? mm 3v m OE INVENTOR. DONALD E. JOHNSON ATTORNEY PATENTED 0501 51978 saw u ur 4 INVENTOR.

' ATTORNEY u ck RELEASE SUPPORT FOR RESCUE BREATHING application Ser. No. 732,133 filed May 27, 1968, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is imperative that a rescue worker be ready to immediately launch into action upon arrival at the scene of a fire or other accident because it may mean the difference between life or death of the victim. The amount of time saved at this point is extremely significant, even if only a matter of a few seconds. Prior attempts have been made to reduce the time involved in donning oxygen type breathing apparatus by including them as a part of the equipment on a rescue vehicle. In all known prior devices the apparatus has been attached to the side or the rear of the vehicle. As-a result, much valuable time is lost upon the arrival of the rescue vehicle at the scene, since the rescue worker must dismount from the vehicle, remove the oxygen apparatus from their racks on the side of the truck, and don the gear on their backs.

One recent improvement enables the rescue worker to don the breathing apparatus without first removing it from the rack thereby saving the several seconds previously required to remove the apparatus from the rack and swing it on the worker's back. This is accomplished by use of a Walkaway bracket comprising spring steel clips that allow the worker to strap the apparatus on unassisted while the tank is still supported in the rack. Although this device improves the opera tions of the rescue worker somewhat, in that he can don the gear while it is still attached to the support, it is still objectionable in that he must either don the gear before mounting the truck, or dismount from the truck and perform all these functions after the truck has come to a stop.

It would therefore be preferable if some means were available to attach the breathing apparatus to the rear of the seat or passengersection of the vehicle so that-the rescue worker would be donning the gear enroute. The Walkaway bracket" and other known supports for breathing apparatus are not adaptable to attachment to the back of a vehicle seat because they hinder the workers exit from the seat after he has strapped the tank on his back.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the present invention, however, the breathing apparatus support is adapted to facilitate the workers exit from the seat with the tank strapped to his back. The support includes a means for attachment to the seat of a vehicle and a locking means for operating a plurality of pairs of arms which partially encircle and normally support the oxygen tank of the breathing apparatus. The arms are, adapted to be quickly withdrawn from their normal position around the tank by the activation of an easily accessible release lever. Upon arrival at the scene of the accident or fire, the rescue worker, who has previously buckled himself into the apparatus, is then able to depress the release lever and make a normal exit from the vehicle without interference from the supporting arms, since they are then freely movable out of the workers way.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a support for a breathing apparatus which allows a rescuewo r ker to assemble the gear enroute to an accident, and immediately upon arrival at the scene to easily dismount from the vehicle ready to begin rescue operations. 1 v c It is another object of this invention to provide a quick release support for a breathing apparatus which may be attached to the seat ofa vehicle and uponrelease is freely movable from a position which might interfere with the exit of the worker and breathing apparatus from the vehicle.

It is a further and more specific object of the invention to provide a quick release support for a breathing apparatus, which normally firmly attaches the oxygen tank of the apparatus to the seat back of the rescue vehicle, so that the worker may buckle himself into the gear enroute to the accident. Upon arrival, the worker merely depresses a release lever to disengage the arms of the support from around the tank of the breathing apparatus.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other objects will appear as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, with parts broken away, of a vehicle seat having a breathing apparatus attached thereto according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the support in closed position and showing the tank in phantom lines;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view taken from therear and showing the support removed from the seat and in an open position;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the support in closed position and showing the tank in phantom lines;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary rear elevation, partially in section, showing the support in open position;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIGS showing the support in closed position;

FIG. 7 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along line 7-7 in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the support according to a second embodiment, showing the support in an open position; and

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 except showing the support in a closed position and with parts broken away for purposes of clarity.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIG. I, there is shown a seat 10 for a rescue vehicle, such as a tire truck, having a support 19 receiving a breathing apparatus 20 including an oxygen tank and straps for mounting the apparatus to the back of a rescue worker and means for attaching the support to the back portion 14 of the passenger's side of the front seat. It is to be recognized that such a support could be used with vehicles other than a fire truck, and could be located at places other than on the seat described, however, for the purposes of the specification, the invention will be described as mounted on the rear portion ofthe seat beside the driver of the tire truck.

The seat 10 is conventional and includes the usual horizontal portion 12 in addition to the vertical back support 14. As will be apparent from FIG. 1, the upholstery and padding has been removed from the section of back support 14 on the pars sengers side, exposing seat frame members 16 and 18.

The breathing apparatus support 19 comprises a pair of horizontally spaced, vertically extending parallel support members 22 and 24, each end of which is provided with mounting holes 26. Fastening screws 28 extend through the mounting holes 26 and through corresponding openings in the exposed seat frame members 16 and 18 to secure support 19 to the rear portion 14 of seat 10.

Median plate 30 is fastened to and extends between support members 22 and 24, and is located approximately midway between the ends thereof. Median plate 30 includes an opening 32 adjacent the rear edge thereof and downwardly extendingtubular cylinder 34 secured to the under surface of said plate, the wall of said cylinder circumscribing the opening 32 in plate 30.

Upper plate 36 extends between the upper ends of supports 22 and 24 and is secured therebetween similarly to median plate 30. A pair of parallel, vertical rods 38 and 46 extend between a position adjacent the front edge ofupper plate 36 and the corresponding edge of lower median plate 30 and pivotally receive a pair ofclamping assemblies 42 and 54. (See FIG. 7).

Right hand clamping assembly 42 comprises a hollow bearing 44 which is pivotally positioned on rod 38 between upper padding 50 on the inner surface thereof and are adapted to wrap around one side of and help retain the oxygen tank T of breathing apparatus 20. Lug 52 extends rearwardly from a point adjacent the lower end of hollow bearing 44 and in the withdrawn position (FIG. 5) covers the opening 32 in plate 30. As the arms 46 and 48 are swung to a gripping position, lug 52 is caused to uncover opening 32 (FIG 6).

A similar left-hand clamping assembly 54 is pivotally positioned on rod 40 and includes a corresponding pair of arms 56 and 58 attached to the upper and lower ends of hollow bearing 60. Arms 56 and 58 are adapted to wrap around the other side of tank T to cooperate with the first pair of arms 46 and 48 in retaining the oxygen tank T. A second lug 62 extends rear wardly from a point adjacent the lower end of bearing 60 and in the withdrawn position covers opening 32 in median plate 30 (FIG. 5).

Lugs 52 and 62 are so positioned on bearings 44 and 60 that upon movement of clamping assemblies 42 and 54 between the gripping (FIG. 4) and withdrawn (FIG. 3) positions lug 52 reciprocates in a plane slightly above the lug 62. Lug 52 is also movable independent of lug 62, that is, lug 52 can reciprocate between one position covering the opening 32 in median plate 30 to its other position uncovering opening 32 without causing a corresponding movement of lug 62.

A lever 64 is pivotally attached at one end 66 to vertically extending angle member 24 by any suitable means and there operates a means for selectively locking and unlocking clamping assemblies 42 and 54 as hereinafter described. The other end of lever 64 extends laterally outward from support 19 beyond tank T and includes a forwardly extending handle 68 which is so positioned that it may be activated by the occupant of the seat. Lever 64 is thereby exposed for easy access by the rescue worker while seated and without turning around.

A pin or plunger 70 is slidably received within cylinder 34 and is attached to the lever 64 by a forwardly projecting pin 72 at the lower end thereof which is received for sliding movement through an elongated slot 74 in a section of lever 64 between the two vertically extending support members 22 and 24. Plunger 70 is adapted to freely move up and down within the cylinder 34 in response to movement of lever 64 from a position where the tip end 77 thereofis below the plane of lug 62 to a position where tip end 77 of plunger 70 extends above the plane of lug 52. The upper portion 76 of plunger 70 is tapered or conically shaped for reasons to be hereinafter described.

The inwardly facing edge 78 (or the edge which bears against plunger 70 in the gripping position) of lug 52 is provided with an indent 80 which is bevelled from top to bottom as at 81 (FIG. 5) to correspond with the taper on the upper end of plunger 70 as shown in FIG. 6. Likewise, the inwardly facing edge 82 of lug 62 is provided with a similar indent 84 bevelled from top to bottom as at 85 (FIG. 5). Indents 80 and 84 provide a guiding surface for the tapered portion of plunger A tension spring 86 has one end attached to support 22 at a point above the intersection of lever 64 and said support. The other end of spring 86 is suitably secured to the lever arm 64 so that the spring is under tension at all times, tending to urge the lever in an upward direction. As a result of the spring tension, the tapered portion of plunger 70 allows the support to be used with tanks of slightly varying size. The plunger 70 will engage the edges 78and 82 at various points along the tapered surface 76 depending on the size of tank T, and spring 86 will urge plunger 70 upward into firm engagement with the edges 78 and 82.

In operation, the tank is disassembled from the support in .the following manner. In a first or closed position, the arms 46,

48, 56, and 58 are firmly bearing against the tank T of breathing apparatus 20, and the tapered portion ofplunger 70 is in its uppermost position bearing against the indents 80 and 84 of lugs 52 and 62 forcing them in an outward direction. As a result of the aforesaid bearing force, arms 46, 48, 56, and 58 are urged against the tank T to securely hold it in position.

Upon arrival at the scene of the accident or fire, the rescue worker has already strapped the tank onto his back. He then depresses the handle 68 of lever 64 in a downward direction, causing plunger 70 to travel downward. thus releasing the pressure against the sides of tank '1'. As the tapered portion 76 of plunger 70 moves out of engagement with the bevelled surfaces 81 and oflugs 52 and 62, the lugs are free to pass over the plunger 70 to a position covering opening 32 in plate 30. In such a second position arms 46, 48, 56. and 58 are completely withdrawn and out of the path of movement of the tank T as the worker turns and dismounts from the vehicle.

If desired, it is sufficient if only the right-hand clamping as sembly 42 is moved out of the way, since the worker normally is moving out that side ofthe vehicle. After lug 52 has cleared the plunger 70 and while tapered portion 76 is still bearing against the bevelled edge 85 of lug 62, the handle may be released, whereupon spring 86 will urge the tip end 77 of plunger 70 against the undersurface of lug 52. In such a position, the arms 46 and 48 will remain in. their withdrawn position free from interference with movement of the breathing apparatus, while arms 56 and 58 will remain in their clamping position. Since the rescue worker normally moves only to the right in dismounting, the left-hand support assembly will not interfere. Ifit is further desired to move both sets ofarms back to a withdrawn position substantially in the plane of the back support 14 of seat 10, the lever may be depressed even further, so that the lug 62 of the left-hand clamping assembly 54 will clear the tip 77 of the tapered portion 76 ofplunger 70. Spring 86 then urges tip 77 against the undersurface of lug 62 holding it in its withdrawn position.

Replacing the breathing apparatus involves substantially the reverse operation. The tank T is placed in its approximate mounted position, and the lever is depressed to relieve the pressure from the underside oflug 62, whereupon arms 46 and 48 are positioned adjacent the sides of tank T. The lever 64 is then released and resumes its upward path until the tapered portion 76 engages the bevelled edges 81 and 85 of lugs 52 and 62. The force of spring 86 will urge plunger 70 into snug bearing relation with lugs 52 and 62, whereupon the arms 46, 48, 56, and 58 will securely grip the tank T of the breathing apparatus 20.

A modified form of the first described embodiment of the breathing apparatus support 19 is shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, with like elements bearing like reference numbers with the prime notation added. The breathing apparatus support 19' includes a pair of horizontally spaced, vertically extending, parallel support members 22' and 24, and a median plate 30' is fastened to and extends between support members 22' and 24'. Median plate 30, as opposed to median plate 30, does not include an opening 32 adjacent the rear edge, however does support the lower endsof rods 38 and 40' which extend between median plate 30. and upper plate 36'. Right hand clamping assembly 42' issi'milar in most respects to clamping assembly 42 as shown in FIG. 7, except that the inner edge 120 of lug 52' does not include indent 80 for receiving the upper end ofa plunger. Likewise, inner edge I22 oflug 62' on left-hand clamping assembly 54 does not include indent 84.

The difference in structure is occasioned by a different actuating member for urging arms 46, 48, 56', and 58' into engagement with tank T. The support 20 of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 comprises a pivotally reciprocable dog instead of the vertically reciprocable plunger 70 shown in FIGS. 17.

Release lever 114 comprises a forwardly extendible handle 116 fixed on a laterally extending shtift 112 journaled in support members 22' and 24' for rotational movement in response to a vertical force on handle 116. Abutments 124 and: 126 are secured to shaft 112 adjacent the inner surfaces of supports 22' and 24' to prevent longitudinal movement of the shaft.

Downwardly protruding dog 110 includes an enlarged end 111 fixed to shaft 112 and rotatable therewith. Dog 110 is mounted between support members 22' and 24' slightly above andadjacent the line of intersection'of lugs :52 and 62. So assembled dog 110 is selectively movable into and out of a position between the two lugs in response to the rotational movement of rear member 112. In the normal storage position dog 110 is spring biased into bearing relation with the inner surfaces 120 and 122 of lugs 52' and 62, forcing them apart and the arms 46' and 48 toward arms 56, 58 to clamp the tank T (FIG. 9). This insures a secure grip on tank T until the rescue worker activates release lever 114.

Spring 118 is a coil-type spring surrounding shaft-112 and confined by abutment 124. One end 117 of spring 118 is attached to support member 22, and the. other end 119 is attached to abutment 124. Shaft 112 is so journaled within support 22' that spring 118 normally induces a pivotal bias to the shaft 112 urging dog 110 forward into its normal position separating lugs 52' and 62'. Springs 121 are also preferably provided around rods 38' and 40' with one end connected to lugs 52' and 62 and the other end connected to median plate 30 for normally biasing the lugs toward each other.

When it is desired to remove tank T from the support apparatus handle 116 of release lever 114 is depressed as shown in FIG. 8 by the occupant of the seat, overcoming the bias of spring 118 and causing shaft 112 to rotate about its longitudinal axis. As a result dog 110 is withdrawn from its normal position against edges 120 and 122 of lugs52 and 62, respectively, whereupon the rods 38',*40 and their associated arms 46', 48', 56, and 58" are freely rotatable thereby freeing the oxygen tank from the breathing apparatus support 19'.

Replacing the oxygen tank T involves substantially the reverse operation. The tank T is placed in its approximate mounted position, and the release lever! 14 is depressed to relieve the pressure against the edges 120 and 122 of lugs 52' and 62, whereupon arms 46 48, 56', and 58"are manually positioned adjacentthe sides of tank T. Lever'l 14 is then released and dog 110 is spring-urged to its forward position where it bears firmly against and separates the lugs 52' and 62. in response to the outward pressure on lugs 52 and 64', arms 46', 48, 56' and 58 are brought into snug engagement with the sides oftank T. v

lt is to be recognized that various changes and modifications could be made to the support, while'still falling within the scope of the invention. For example, the means for urging the arms against the sides of tank T or T could be any other suitable means, and the two embodiments described above are merely representative thereof. It should be kept in mind that the main object of the invention is to provide a support wherein the arms which normally engage the tank of a breathing apparatus and are adapted to be moved out of the way upon disengagement from the tank through an easily accessible, quick-release mechanism. Such a support allows the rescue worker to instantly release the breathing apparatus from the support upon his arrival at the scene of a fire or accident, the support being desirably secured to the rear of a seat or other portion of a vehicle to permit a passenger to don the breathing apparatus en route to an emergency.

Therefore it is to be understood that the foregoing description and accompanying drawings comprehend only the general and preferred embodiments of'the invention, and that various changes in the construction, arrangement and general combination of parts may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

lclaim:

l. A quick release support for a breathing .apparatus, wherein said breathing apparatus comprises an oxygen tank with straps for attachment to the back of a rescue worker, said support comprising:

a. means for attaching the support to a supporting surface;

b. at least one pair of arms and means for pivotally attaching said arms to said support;

c. means for selectively locking said arms in a first position in engagement with the opposite sides of said tank and unlocking said arms to a second position wherein said arms are free to move relative to each other for releasing the tank; and

d. said-locking and unlocking means comprising:

' i. a lug connected to each arm and extending angularly therefrom, said lugs being movable toward and away from each other in response'to a pivotal movement of said arms;

ii. said locking means retaining'said lugs against relative movement when said arms are in'said first position; and

iii. a lever operatively. connected to said locking and unlocking means and extending laterally outwardly from said support beyond said arms, whereby said lever is exposed for operating said locking and unlocking means when said support contains one of said tanks.

2. The support according to claim l wherein said means for pivotally attaching said arms to the support includes a bearing connected to each arm in said pair of arms, said bearing being journaled forpivotal movement on said support.

3. 'Theibreathing apparatus support according to claim 2 wherein said meansfor selectively locking and unlocking said arms in clamping position comprises a vertically reciprocal plunger, said plunger being movable from a'first position spaced beyond said lugs into a second position intersecting the planes of said lugs, said plunger in said second position lying between and bearing against the inner edges of said lugs, said plunger urgingsaid lugs apart when said plunger is moved into said second position. 1

4. A structure according to claim '1 which includes upper and lower pairs of arms, all of which are movable together into clamping position, the arms on one side of the tank being movable outof clamping position independently of the arms on the other side ofzthe tank, said upper and lower pairs of arms operativein response to the movement of said locking andunlocking means.

5. The breathing apparatus support according to claim 1 wherein said means for selectively locking and unlocking said arms in clamping position comprises a reciprocal dog, said dog being movable from a first position out of engagement with saidlugs into a second position between and bearing against the adjacent inner edges of said lugs, said dog urging said lugs apart in said second position.

6. The breathing apparatus support according to claim 5 wherein said dog is secured to a rotatable, horizontal shaft.

7. The support according to claim lwherein said lugs lie in vertically spaced parallel planes and. are movable from an overlapped position toward a laterally separated position, whereby :when said lugs are urged toward said laterally separated position,.said arms are locked in said clamped position, and when said lugs are in the overlapped position, the arms are unlocked and free to move relative to each other.

8. The breathing apparatus support according to claim 7 wherein said means for selectively locking said lugs in clamping position comprises a vertically reciprocal plunger, said plunger being movable from a first position spaced beyond said lugs into a second position intersecting the planes of said lugs, said plunger in said second position lying between and bearing against the inner edges of said lugs, said plunger urg ing said lugs apart when said plunger ismoved into said second position.

9. The support according to claim 8 wherein the end of said plunger ad jacentsaid lugs is tapered to substantially a pointed tip, whereby movement of said plunger from said first position toward said second position moves the arms to clamping positron.

10. A support according to claim 8 wherein said lugs include a guide indent on said inner edge contacting said plunger,'the sides of said indent being bevelled to correspond with the taper on said plunger. I

11. A support according to claim 9 including a spring means operatively connected to-said lever and normally urging said plunger into-said second position.

12. The breathing apparatus support according to claim 7 wherein said means for selectively locking said lugs in clamping position comprises a reciprocal dog mounted on a rotatable shaft, said dog being movable from a first position out of engagement with said lugs into a second position between and bearing against the adjacent inner edges of said lugs, said dog urging said lugs apart in said second position.

13. The breathing apparatus support according to claim 12 wherein said dog is secured to a rotatable, horizontal shaft.

14. The support according to claim 12 wherein said dog is responsive to reciprocal movement of said lever connected to said shaft, said shaft being journaied to said support frame.

15. The support according to claim 14 wherein said rotatable shaft further includes spring means connected thereto for normally urging said dog into said second position.

16. A rescue device including the combination of a breathing apparatus comprising an oxygen tank having straps thereon for attaching said tank to the back of a rescue worker; a support means receiving said tank and attached to a supporting surface; said support means including at least one pair of arms pivotally attached thereto and engageable with opposite sides of said tank; means for selectively locking said arms in a first position in engagement with the opposite sides of said tank and unlocking said arms to a second position wherein said arms are free to move relative to each other for releasing the tank; said locking and unlocking means comprising:

a. a lug connected to each arm and extending angularly therefrom, said lugs being movable toward and away from each other in response to a pivotal movement of said arms;

b. said locking means retaining said lugs against relative movement when said arms are in said first position; and

c. a lever operatively connected to said locking and unlocking means and extending laterally outwardly from said support beyond the sides of said tank, whereby said lever is exposed for operating said locking and unlocking means when said support contains one of said tanks.

17. The combination according to claim 16 wherein said support means further includes a bearing connected to each arm in said pair of arms, said bearings being journaled for pivotal movement on said support. I

18. The combination according to claim 16 wherein said means for selectively locking and unlocking said arms in clamping position comprises a reciprocal dog, said dog being movable from a first position out of engagement with said lugs into a second position between and bearing against the adjacent inner edges of said lugs, said dog urging said lugs apart in said second position.

19. The combination according to claim l8.wherein said dog is secured to a rotatable horizontal shaft.

20. The support according to claim 16 wherein said lugs lie in vertically spaced parallel planes and are movable from an overlapped position toward a laterally separated position, whereby when said lugs are urged toward said laterally separated position, said arms are locked in said clamped position, and when said lugs are in the overlapped position, the arms are unlocked and free to move relative to each other.

21. The combination according to claim 19, wherein said dog is responsive to reciprocal movement of said lever connected to said shaft, said shaft being journaled to said support frame.

22. The support according to claim 21 wherein said rotatable shaft further includes spring means connected thereto for normally urging said dog into said second position.

23. The combination according to claim 16 including an upper and lower pair of arms, all of which are movable together into clamping position, the arms on one side of the tank being movable out of clamping position independently of the arms on the other side of the tank, said upper and lower pairs of arms operative in response to the movement of said locking and unlocking means. a 

